Lord Melvedere's Ghost (6 page)

He
wondered briefly what his staff at Melvedere manor would think of
him bringing home such a vagabond waif, and wondered whether they
would stand her outside and scrub her down before they allowed her
into the house, or whether he would be shunned and given the dog’s
dinner for mistreating her in such a scandalous way.

Although
he had a huge home, there were only a handful of servants. They
were a small group of people who had grown very close to each
other, and were used to depending on each other to get the job of
running the manor done with a smooth efficiency that was startling.
Although they each had their own job to do, it wasn’t unusual to
find the butler emptying the downstairs grates, or the upstairs
maid cooking in the kitchen. Everybody pitched in, including him
when he was at home.

He
wondered whether Cecily would be happy to do the same. Given her
background and upbringing, he wondered if the staff would be able
to stop her. She was about the least officious person he had ever
come into contact with. It didn’t bother him one bit that she
wasn’t entitled and wealthy, or used to being in a huge house like
his, and he had no doubts as to her suitability to fit in with his
lifestyle and home. The servants, such as they were, were a very
large part of his life; more like an extended family than paid
employees, and that was just the way he intended to keep it. Cecily
would have no problem fitting in to become part of the family, he
was sure of it.

His
rather unconventional ‘family’ was extended by the presence of a
‘librarian’, Miss Emstridge who, having been employed by his father
shortly before his death, had never seemed able to finish
cataloguing the library. She had been there for so long now that
Jamie couldn’t find the heart to sack her, or tell her to move on
and, as such, she was now as much a part of the library as the
books.

Rubbing
a hand down his face, Jamie ignored the longing to return home and
pushed out of the chair, trying not to look at Cecily’s pink cheeks
as he passed on his way to the door.

“
Once you have eaten and woken up a bit, come downstairs. We
need to get going as soon as we can.” He didn’t wait for her reply,
merely snapped the door closed behind him and scowled at the surly
maid as he passed. She merely sniffed unconcernedly at him and
carried on sweeping the floor, leaving him to shake his head in
disgust as he walked through the dust cloud she created.

With any
luck, they would be able to cover some distance today and, although
it would mean riding into the night, they should arrive at
Melvedere by just after nightfall. He and Jonathan were capable of
riding through the night, if only Cecily would be able to keep up.
For now though, they would just have to see what happened. One
thing he knew with certainty was that they couldn’t afford to be
lulled into a false sense of security. They had scraped by and
avoided the ambush yesterday by the skin of their teeth; they may
not be so lucky today. With the possibility of the guards lurking
at any point on their journey, it was imperative they keep moving
and as quickly as possible. If only Cecily was up to it.

The
decision of how long they could keep riding was taken out of his
hands later that afternoon when it became apparent that Cecily was
seriously struggling to remain in the saddle. He had noticed her
wince as she had mounted the horse earlier that morning, and could
understand her discomfort however, he was bleakly aware that there
was little consolation he could offer her. Instead, he had merely
smiled unconcernedly and urged her on, feeling a cad for forcing
her to ride while in pain. Throughout the day, conversation had
been stilted and almost wary until, by mid-afternoon, it was
apparent that she would barely make it to early evening, let alone
nightfall before she fell off through sheer exhaustion.

Jonathan
shook his head and eyed the town lying in the valley further
ahead.

“
I’ll go and see what I can sort out,” he muttered, glancing in
concern at Cecily. Although she hadn’t uttered a word of complaint,
she had grown increasingly morose to the point that he was certain
she would just pass out on them through pain if they carried
on.

Jamie
nodded and moved his horse closer to Cecily’s. They hadn’t been
followed for several miles and he felt reasonably confident that
they could take an undisturbed rest for a while.

“
Let’s eat,” Jamie declared, drawing his horse to a halt and
dismounting. Tugging off the saddle bag, he turned to hold Cecily’s
horse, frowning when she simply sat staring at him rather than
dismounting.

“
Throw your leg over the neck and slide down,” he ordered
softly. She should throw her leg behind and dismount properly but
he wondered if she could even bend her legs.

Cecily
shook her head. Many miles back she had frozen. Parts of her she
could not feel at all, and she was fairly certain that she would
never be able to stand up let alone sit down ever again.

“
Slide down, I’ll catch you,” Jamie muttered, shaking his head.
He began to wonder if he was going to have to simply pull her off
when she made no move to do as she was told but, eventually, she
slowly eased her leg over the neck of the horse. The downward
motion as she slid off made her gasp, but her feet didn’t touch the
floor before she was swept off her feet and carried to a small
grassy knoll. There she was deposited so carefully on her feet that
she didn’t know whether to smile in gratitude, or cry. She stood
for several long moments and waited for the blood to return to her
toes, silently nodded her thanks at Jamie who was watching her
carefully.

Eventually she cautiously sat down and they ate in
companionable silence. The horses grazed happily nearby, seemingly
oblivious to the fact that they weren’t tethered to
anything.

Jamie
stared off at the town and took the opportunity to study the area
around them.

Cecily
tried hard not to stare at him. Although she knew that men rode
practically everywhere, she had never fully appreciated just what
they went through when they undertook long journeys. Travelling
carriages indeed made her sick to her stomach, but it was a much
better alternative to riding astride a horse for hours on end. She
shivered in horror at the thought of having to get back on, and
wondered if they would allow her to walk for a while.

“
There is someone coming,” Cecily muttered, nodding to the
small black carriage heading down the narrow country lane toward
them.

“
I know,” Jamie replied, gathering their belongings up. “It is
our ride.”

“
Our ride?” Cecily glanced from the horses to the carriage and
gulped, staring down at her remaining bread and cheese
cautiously.

“
It’s the lesser of two evils. The rest of the ride has to be
continual. We won’t stop and it will be dark soon. Although you are
good at riding, you aren’t used to riding at night and it is far
too dangerous to risk having you out in the open so late. We have
to stick to the roads and will be slower in the carriage, but at
least we can keep going until we get to our
destination.”

“
Where is that?” Cecily asked, aware that she had yet to be
told of anything that was going on. She frowned in frustration at
the helplessness of her situation and the fact that she was, for
now at least, completely at their mercy.

“
Melvedere Manor,” Jamie murmured, casting a sideways glance at
her. “It is about the safest place I know. We will remain there
while we await news of Archie and Portia. As soon as they are
cleared by Hugo, we will meet up and decide where to go from then
on. It is evident that Applemore, our base, cannot be used for the
time being. There is much work for us to do, and none of it you can
be involved in, but at Melvedere you have the space to explore,
rest, and simply enjoy being looked after for a change.” He didn’t
wait for any further questions. He didn’t want her asking too many
questions about Melvedere’s owner, or the people there, just in
case anything went wrong and the French managed to capture her to
extract information. He couldn’t lose sight of the fact that her
father was under suspicion, and was increasingly looking guilty of
being a French smugglers’ financier – well, one of them at any
rate. As such, that made Cecily someone the French needed to get
hold of, at all costs apparently.

“
Come on, let’s go.”

Cecily
pushed awkwardly to her feet, stumbling after him when he made no
attempt to stop and wait for her.

“
What about the horses?”

“
We will leave them here,” Jamie replied
unconcernedly.

“
What?” Cecily squeaked, looking in horror at the huge animals.
Although Jonathan had ridden his horse into the village, theirs
were still saddled and busy munching grass. “You cannot leave them
here, still saddled and without shelter.”

Jamie
rolled his eyes. “A farmer will probably spot them and collect
them. The horses will be fine,” he declared
dismissively.

Cecily
scowled at Jamie in disgust. Although she was glad she didn’t have
to ride one again, she wasn’t going to ignore the fact that the
huge beast had carried her for miles. She wasn’t going to simply
abandon it in the middle of nowhere to fend for itself.

“
I’m not going,” Cecily declared loudly, crossing her arms with
a scowl of defiance.

Jamie
froze and turned toward her, his astonishment clear on his face.
“What?”

“
You heard me,” Cecily replied, glaring at him. “I said I am
not going. I am not leaving these horses here to fend for
themselves. They could die!”

“
Cecily -”

“
No!” Cecily snapped, turning her back on him and walking
toward her horse. “I am not leaving him here.” She cautiously
picked up the reins and ignored Jamie’s askance look as she stalked
around him. Her chin pointed upward defiantly as she marched toward
the town, the horse moseying obediently behind her.

“
Where are you going?” Jamie shouted. Having watched her for
several minutes, he now knew that she meant what she said and was
simply not going to abandon the horses. “You can’t lead the horses
all the way to Melvedere.”

“
I can do what I want,” Cecily called back, not stopping her
defiant march across the field.

Nonplussed, Jamie placed his hands on his hips and watched
her. He contemplated throwing her in the back of the carriage and
riding up on the box seat for the rest of the journey. With
Jonathan driving, it was probably better than riding in the
carriage with Miss Wretching all the way to Melvedere, but he
simply couldn’t allow her to go on her little tantrum
alone.

“
Where do you think you are going to go?” Jamie muttered,
stalking after her.

“
I am going to find someone who will take the
horse.”

“
They could eat it,” Jamie growled, rolling his eyes at her
inelegant snort.

“
Better them than a fox.”

“
Foxes don’t eat horses, Cecily.”

“
Neither do people.”

“
For God’s sakes, you cannot go wandering into a town looking
for an owner for a horse you don’t own!”

Cecily
spun on her heel. “You simply cannot abandon a horse to fend for
itself, especially one that has carried you for miles, it is
immoral. Not when he is used to living in a stable and being fed
hay and, and – well, things.” She shot him a dirty look before
turning on her heel. She had spotted his horse following them, and
wondered how long it would be before Jamie understood that his own
horse had no intention of being left behind either. Hiding her
smirk, she marched confidently onward, smiling obliquely at
Jonathan’s rapt amusement as they marched past the carriage he had
pulled to a stop on the other side of the low slung
wall.

Jamie
swore.

Cecily
ignored him.

Jamie
turned to speak to Jonathan only to spot his own horse standing a
few inches away from his shoulder. Rolling his eyes he turned to
glare at Cecily’s back.

“
Lord, save me,” Jamie snarled, glaring at Jonathan before
making a circling motion with his finger. Jonathan shook his head
and did as he was told, moving on to find a place to turn the
carriage around.

“
Fine! I’ll take the horses into the town and find them a new
home. Will you be happy then?” Jamie grumbled, catching hold of the
reins of his own horse.

“
No,” Cecily snapped, glaring at him. “You could just leave
them further down the road, or with someone who won’t look after
them. I am going to find them a proper home.”

“
But they aren’t even your blasted horses!” Jamie
shouted.

Cecily
spun on her heel and glared at him. “Don’t you swear at me, I am
doing what is right whether you like it or not. Go on without me if
I am holding you up.”

She
turned around and continued to march toward town, physically
trembling with suppressed fury. She had never shouted before in her
entire life; it felt as though she was being incredibly rude, but
she refused to apologise for it. It felt liberating; strange;
slightly unnerving. This was a side to her she had never seen
before, and she wasn’t sure where it had come from. Surely the
events of the last few days hadn’t changed her that much, had
they?